Bring out the Royal silver! Medal for Team GB as Zara and eventing team ride to glory
Great Britain won silver today after a thrilling finale to the equestrian team eventing competition. Team GB, including the Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips, finished behind Germany in an exciting contest watched by other members of the Royal family. Success was assured when the final British rider Tina Cook incurred only just one time fault on her round, giving Britain its 18th Olympic post-war eventing medal. The outcome made up for Zara’s own disappointment when she and her horse High Kingdom incurred a time penalty and knocked down a fence.
They went around the course at Greenwich Park, incurring seven penalty points after knocking down the second fence and finishing slightly after the time limit.
Zara, Cook and team-mates Nicola Wilson, William Fox-Pitt and Mary King went into the final day of the competition in second place. And they received a rapturous reception from the home crowd, as Britain looked to overcome leaders Germany and climb to the top of the podium.
However, Germany’s riders did enough to secure gold. New Zealand won bronze.
London 2012 Olympics News : Phillips Idowu fit to compete at London 2012 Olympics
Idowu cast doubt on his bid for triple-jump glory at London 2012 last week when he failed to travel for a pre-Games training camp in Portugal.
The BOA responded by requesting the medical records of the silver medallist from Beijing, who remained in the UK for treatment on what was described as a nerve problem in his hip and back.
The 33-year-old eventually complied on Thursday, despite reacting angrily to the BOA’s intervention.
Five days on, BOA chef de mission Andy Hunt was confident Idowu would be ready for the men’s triple-jump qualifiers at the Olympic Stadium a week today.
“Our medical team are in discussions with Phillips’ team, including his physio,” Hunt said.
“Phillips is making good progress and, right now, we expect Phillips to compete.”
Paula Radcliffe’s withdrawal from the women’s marathon has already hit Great Britain’s medal hopes in athletics and Idowu is one of the favourites for the triple-jump.
London 2012 Olympics News: Fencer Shin A-Lam stages dramatic sit-down protest after losing controversial semi-final
South Korean fencer Shin Lam broke down in tears amid extraordinary scenes at the ExCeL arena last night in a women’s epee semi-final and was forced to stay on court for over an hour as her delegation protested the most controversial incident of the Games thus far.
The countdown clock in the 25-year-old’s contest against reigning Olympic gold medallist Britta Heidemann was reset from zero to one second with the scores tied on 5-5, though Shin would have taken the victory through a ‘priority ruling’ which meant the onus was on Heidemann to score another point.
Shin believed she was through to the final, but as the clock was reset, Heidemann pounced to score a decisive hit. It appeared to have given her a place in the final against Ukraine’s Yana Shemyakana. Shin, meanwhile, broke down in tears.
Shim Jaesung, the Korean coach, then furiously launched an appeal against the decision to allow the fight to continue and it was nearly half an hour before it was announced to the crowd – slow-handclapping by this stage – that Heidemann’s win stood.
Shin broke down in tears for the second time and sat on the runway while her opponent celebrated she remained there, a forlorn figure.
The crowd was then told she was doing that because a formal appeal was being considered and if she left the field of play it would be deemed an acceptance of defeat.
London 2012 Olympics News: Short News
TENNIS
While all these watery goings-on are all very well, today’s wet conditions are not doing much for Andy Murray’s schedule in the men’s singles tennis over at Wimbledon. His second-round match against Jarkko Niemenen has been delayed by the rain. The Centre Court roof is being cranked into action to bring the elements under control.
ROWING
In the midst of all the excitement at Greenwich, I have some more British success on the lake at Eton Dorney to tell you about.
Bill Lucas and Sam Townsend are into the final of the double sculls after finishing third in their semi-final. And the men’s lightweight men’s four, including brothers Peter and Richard Chambers also progressed to their final after winning their semi-final race.
BEACH VOLLEYBALL
It’s not just the athletes who have been entertaining the Olympic crowds, but also London mayor Boris Johnson, who has made a surprise appearance at the beach volleyball today. Tongue firmly in cheek, he commended the host nation’s politeness in “showing great natural restraint” by not hoarding the medals more.
I wouldn’t have put it past Boris to have had a go on court himself… although I don’t think many people would like to see him in a bikini?
CANOE SLALOM
While we await the return of Great Britain’s fencers after their silver success in the team event, a man who tasted that mineral in Beijing is about to try and go one better on home soil.
Great Britain’s David Florence is in the individual canoe slalom semi-final which is about to get going at the Lee White Water Centre. He is a multi-talented fella Mr Florence. He applied to be an astronaut with the European Space Agency before deciding to take on the artificial rapids.
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